


One Hell of a Trick

by PensiveManiac



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Adam Out Of Hell, Adam is Saved, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, gabriel is alive, that's the plot guys, the Pit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-24
Updated: 2014-07-24
Packaged: 2018-02-10 04:47:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2011425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PensiveManiac/pseuds/PensiveManiac
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gabriel's back, and he's got plans to bring back the third Winchester. Sam's skeptical, Dean's confused, and Cas makes a very special appearance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	One Hell of a Trick

**Author's Note:**

> This wouldn't be a thing without my friends: Chistarpax and Fragmental Dani, who played Dean and Sam (and Luci) respectively in the RP this was born out of. Hope you like it.

Every alarm in the bunker went off simultaneously. Lights the boys didn't know they had started flashing. Two different air raid sirens blare their wails into the confined space. Just as suddenly, the sound and fury dies off as a familiar voice is heard cursing. "All this for little old me? It's amazing. You'd think you boys knew how to treat a dead archangel these days!? Gabriel patted nonexistent dust off his clothes, as though he’d just gotten in from a long journey. “Miss me?”

"Dude, how are you even alive?!" Dean yelled as he realized exactly who was standing in the entryway.

Gabe gestured vaguely with his hands, "I'm guessing, 'Hello, TRICKSTER!' isn't going to cut it this time, huh?"   
Sam woke up to a faint but strange noise. It sounded like... alarms? He sat up in bed, bewildered. Touching his ears, he pulled a tootsie roll from each. The alarms were going off! "Dean!" he scrambled to his feet and grabbed his gun. It felt much lighter than usual. Upon examination, the gun was a gummy gun. "Dean!" He skitterred into the hallway, in plaid pajama pants and a gray t shirt. He nearly laughed when he saw what was causing everything. "Ok." He held up a finger, tilting his head and his lips moving several times before words actually came out. "You. Are. Dead. And this? This place is warded. How... and... You know what? Forget it. Is that really you?"   
"Yes it's really me, Samsquatch, and I'm sad you had to ask." Gabe smiled pointing to the very wards and symbols and sirens and lights that Sam had just mentioned. "Who else could not only make it into the batcave, but look this good doing it? Since Dean-o won't answer me, why don't you? Did you miss me?" Gabe held his hand out to Sam, grinning wildly. There were streamers decorating the bunker. No one knew where the streamers had come from and Gabe had the feeling no one would ask

Sam stood gawking for a few moments, the nicknames giving him ease. "Um, uh.. yeah!" he finally stammered with a dumbfounded half-grin. He shook Gabriel's hand tightly. "But no. Seriously. How? I mean..." The confused look returned to his face.   
"Do they tell little humans where they're going to go when they die? Or how to come back? I don't mean bedtime stories, I mean turn left at the tractor in the road and go on for 13 paces and you're gonna be home in time for Honey Boo Boo!' Yeah, I don't think so. It's a bit complicated, a bit esoteric, and frankly just knowing where I've been would be half the answer, that I don't have! What I know I'm at your door, I can smell Cassie, and I can see Dean-o hasn't got much better looking." Gabe let the fake smile slip for a fraction of a second, long enough for Sam to see, not enough for the rest, "So, about my question, you really missed me Gigantor? I missed you too, I promise. I even almost missed Cassie and her sweet baboo."

Dean rolled his eyes and glowered at Gabriel. This was so not his day. 

"Well, I mean, you helped us out big time even though you didn't want to take sides. So as much as I can miss a man who helped us so much but made me advertise a herpes drug... Sure!" Sam smirked and shrugged, then looked to Dean. "Where's Cas? Someone needs to shut off the alarms. And any reason you dropped in?"

"I have no idea where Cas is, and yeah. Gabriel.... why did you 'drop in'?" Dean went to the map table and shut off the alarms with a switch.

"Can't I just come by and visit my two favorite vict--- hunters? I mean you each have thought you killed me at least once, and I kind of killed one of you a bunch of times. From the way I understand the way you boys work, that makes us practically family! Isn't mutual attempted homicide the Winchester way of saying 'howdy'?” 

At their blank expression, he continued, “You know: Crowley, Cassie, each other, I mean, seriously, you never noticed before?" Gabe's face twisted in confusion. "Weird. Welp, anyway, I'm here and I needed some help. See, apparently the thing to do for angels who everyone thought were dead a billion times over but keep on coming is to rescue a Winchester from Hell. It's mostly a Cas thing, but Zach did it in reverse and Lucifer did it sideways. And it occurs to me that if I do something big enough for you two knuckleheads I might actually be able to be the second angel ever to be in your good graces. I've seen what that's done for Castiel's life expectancy and general power level. Other than the occasional death and great tragedy, being a Winchester's pet angel is a pretty good deal, all things considered." Gabe looked back and forth from one brother to the other, seeing if they'd figured it out yet. "I want to do what you morons forgot in all your moping and whining. I'm saving your brother. I'm going to free Adam from the Pit."   
"Adam? ... You want to crack open the pit and..." Sam blinked, stopping himself from stammering again. He looked to Dean and then back to Gabriel. "Let me get this right. You want to raise your brothers... because that's Michael and Lu.. Luc... " Visions of the mental torment he endured kept him from saying the name. "I mean, whatever was Adam is long gone, wouldn't you think?"

"Raise Mike and Luci? Are you insane? Why in Dad's name would I do that? Did the two of those steaming piles of dicks show up when you got sprung, Sammich? No, 'cause there's a way to let a human soul out. And as for your wishful thinking that Adam's 'gone'... where would he go to?” Gabriel winced in genuine sympathy at Sam’s wishful thinking. “Souls are pretty much eternal. That's the point. It's why yours was so... impaired upon your return. Don't worry about that though, I have a plan to deal with your dear brother without having to deal with mine." Gabe suddenly took on an uncomfortably serious expression as he looked at Sam, "I am sorry, though. I should have realized the idea of dealing with the Pit or the aftermath would be... hard for you. I mean in my defense if I hadn't put in a good word with Death or pulled some heavenly strings when the wall came down things would be a bit worse. But that's not the point... I'm sorry to have triggered that. If I'm trying to join team flannel and denim I should really be more careful about setting off serious trauma like that." Gabe snapped, conjuring forth a platter with a salad, a beer and an ice cream sundae on it. "Forgive me?"

Sam snorted, but not angrily. "Letting a human soul out didn't quite work out that way before. But thanks to Cas... and you too, now, I guess it’s possible." He blinked as he realized he'd begun rubbing his palm with his thumb absently. He quickly took a beer and eyed the salad. He took a long swig, thinking things over. "If the angels could do it, then an arch could only be better. Can you guarantee Adam would come out... better than I did? Your brothers may not play nicely at all." Once more he eyed the salad, wondering why such non sweet food was summoned. He glanced back up at Gabriel, wondering if he was telling the truth about the wall.

"The salad's for you, Moose.” Gabe pointed out gently, “Sorry, that's Crowley's name for you, but sometimes the antlers fit. I know you don't have the sweet tooth some of us are blessed with.” He smirked at Sam’s expression, then explained, “As for Adam's sanity, I can promise you that I'll be involved hands on this time. You boys do finally get that there's oceans of depth of supernatural drama going on that you don't see, right? I mean now that Cassie's got a front row seat you must have realized that these things don't just come out of nowhere. There's all kinds of angels and gods and whatever the hell Death is just doing little things here and there to influence, help or hinder you two and anyone else who gets involved outside their weight class." Gabe grinned wider and gestured with both arms, taking a bow with a flair, "but now, you've got a heavy hitter in your corner. I can guarantee that I'll do everything in my power to make him better and ensure he's fully restored. And seeing how an angel on the verge of falling fixed you, I think I can handle this one."

Sam grimaced at the reminder of what he’d endured. If he could spare Adam a moment of that, he started to think out loud, "Then again... whatever he comes out like has got to be better than where he is now. And, by the way, we're the Winchesters. We get the whole,” he added a pair of sarcastic air quotes, “‘supernatural drama’ thing better than any other hunters out there. So what do you need from us exactly? A seal of approval? This bunker is all we have to protect you with. Besides us, I mean."   
"It's actually you that are the most important part." Gabe took in their expressions and realized they had no idea what he meant. "You know how angels can't possess someone without consent? Did you ever think that when it comes to the mystical or spiritual or whatever, there's a lot of Rules like that? When Dean went to Hell it was predestined that the Righteous Man be raised, and both you and he had prayed hard in various ways for him to be brought back. Dean gave his consent in Hell, though Cas probably hasn't told him that he did that, and you gave the angels the right to move by praying for your brother all those years." Gabriel sighed, perched himself on a nearby chair and snapped a drink into his hand. It had an umbrella in it. And most of a fruit salad. "Getting your giant ass out of the pit was tougher. There was no prophecy saying the vessel would be raised. Plus, Dean may have made the deal for you, but you willingly stepped in the Pit. You gave consent twice, once to Lucifer and once by willingly going to Luci's time out corner. We're not allowed to mess with stuff like that... normally. Luckily, Dean had corrupted Cassie pretty well by that point, so that made things a bit less... official. Heaven was in Chaos, and I was hiding in the shadows trying to get you sprung without ending up in front of Raph for warcrimes and having a spine. We got you out, but since your soul was what made the decision to go in the first place, we had to pull in the big guns for that.” Gabe glared momentarily at Sam as if it were his fault that he’d been such trouble to raise, “Then there was the spiritual and mental damage to deal with, and while I would have loved to pop up and play medic, there was no way to know yet how much of Lucifer you brought back with you. I couldn't risk it. I'm still so sorry about that."   
"So Crowley... he just lied about being the one to bring me back? And Dean's good buddy Death didn't.... Or. You were the ones that fished up my soul for Death." Sam fell back against the wall, blinking several times as the Gabriel's story sunk in. "Must've been why Death did it anyway... even though Dean lost his bet. That's a wild story. You'll understand if I want Cas to confirm it. Or hell, even confirm that you're you." Another swig of beer went down and he noted for the first time it was his favorite brand. "And. We don't exactly pray anymore. Well, not to anyone except Cas, and that's if he's having a good week. Our prayers are empty, Gabriel. Sorry, man, but that's the truth. God's gone, you belong to a big family of dicks, and the only ones I can really count on are Dean and Cas. Again, on good weeks and speaking terms. So if prayer is out of the picture, are you saying our consent has power? How does that help you?" Sam slid to the floor, suddenly feeling a bit odd in his pajamas. How long had he slept, anyway?   
Gabriel was getting a wee bit tired of Sam’s Winchester-level-thickness. They had to have some genetic trademark on this level of willful ignorance, "Free will, Gigantor. Human free will. Try to remember that prior to the dickless wonders screwing everything up in the Heavenly scheme, we were pretty big on that as a genuine rule. Even after they decided to overcompensate for not having dicks by becoming a horde of them, there are Rules. And just as a human soul has power, so too does a human decision." 

At Sam’s still blank look, Gabe sighed, rubbing his eyes and snapping up another drink. Why are humans so freaking dense about these things? "Oh, and I'm not big on hands on work normally. In case you haven't noticed, I'm far more about setting things up and making others do the heavy lifting. Now, trickery, reality shifting, deceit, and manipulation... that's me! I whispered in Crowley's ear. I mean he thought I was one of his demons,” in explanation Gabriel shapeshifter to appear a generic thug with black eyes, then back. 

“He and Cas were working together for the angelic mojo, so that was convenient. Death and I go way back, like WAY back. Remember, I was the Messenger. I'd tell people about the whole ‘Sodom and Gomorrah will be destroyed,’ he'd handle the clean up. He owed me one for a thing with a knight back in the middle ages.” Gabe smiled thinking to good times. It wasn’t often a movie was made out of his encounters, even if they had cut out his part. That’s existentialists for you, “Anyway, I'd be glad to have Cas confirm I'm me. I'll even let you use my horn on me,” he snapped, calling forth a simple brass horn which somehow radiated both age and power, “which he can confirm is the genuine article and will work on me. You remember, you thought you ran across it back in the day... makes you tell the truth? Dad made me carry it for a few centuries after a trick I pulled on the wrong pagan god. You know what it's like, start one Ragnarok or Apocalypse and no one lets you live it down." Gabe grinned, further reminiscing on good times. He really needed to give Thor a call one of these days. They hadn't had a bar crawl with Bacchus and the boys in ages. "So once Cassie vets me, you and Dean-o just have to give me the go ahead, take responsibility for your brother, and maybe help with a spell. You know, and if necessary one of you can lend me your soul. Nothing big. Then you get your brother back, I get some well earned redemption and put on the Winchester Christmas card list." Gabe put every ounce of Trickster charm and millennia of practice hiding his real emotions to make the next line sound casual. "Maybe even get to join your ever growing family. I mean with Charlie, Kevin, Cassie, Garth, and everyone else... you guys are practical running a Home for Wayward Supernatural Orphans. What's one more?" He mentally turned his eyes Heavenward, and thought loudly Dad, I know you don't do a lot for us lately, but if you could maybe not let him see how much I need this, I promise I'll leave the clergy alone for a whole month. I'll even stop messing with the televangelists for a week if you want. Gabe wasn't a big fan of praying, but the Winchesters called for desperate measures.   
"Oh. Just help with a spell. Just lend you my soul." Sam laughed, shaking his head. "Just.... for Adam." A sad smile slid onto his face as he thought for a few moments. He lifted his eyes to Gabriel's face, searching for any sign of treachery in the making. Had he really been the one to give Crowley the idea of raising him and his grandfather? The idea of a door into Purgatory would be such irresistible bait to make the king bite and get nastily hooked. "For Adam. Little boy lost who had no idea what the hell he was getting into in the first place. A spell and the soul of a Winchester, because the rest is all so easy to say yes to." He locked eyes with Gabriel. "Maybe not right away, but you will have to explain your plan in detail." Sam suddenly wanted a shot of whiskey, and looked away, settling for his beer. "Hard to believe our souls are still worth any damned thing after all, well, after everything."   
Dean glanced from Sam to Gabriel and back before sighing. Before the sigh had fully left his mouth, Castiel appeared directly between the brothers and Gabriel.

“Gabriel, I respect that you may have legitimate business here, but I must insist you stand back until you’ve sworn you have no plans to harm either brother in any way.” Cas glanced at the Horn in Gabriel’s hand and his lips twisted in a close approximation of a smile. “You hold your Horn, so I’ll believe you, but I want to hear it with no loopholes or prevarication. I’ve been among the Winchesters long enough to know such things when I hear them.”

“I am Gabriel, Messenger of God, and I swear on this Horn and my Father’s Name that I have no intention to harm either Sam or Dean Winchester nor to allow any harm to come to them by my inaction. Everything I have said since my arrival in the bunker is true and I genuinely wish to free Adam Millegan, brother of Sam and Dean Winchester, from the Pit.” Gabriel tossed the Horn into the air, where it promptly vanished. “Good enough, little bro?”

Castiel smiled broadly for the first time in what felt like ages. “He speaks the truth, and would have no choice but to do so with that Horn in his hand. Now, as much as this is a noble cause, I require Dean’s assistance with a matter of some importance.” His smile faded slightly as he looked to Sam, “I’m sorry to leave the burden of this matter on you, but I may have a way to deal with the current angelic chaos.”

Sam nodded, “I’ve got this, you two go.” 

With a rueful glance, Dean went to take Cas’s arm, first saying to Sam, “If you don’t want to let Trickster boy use your soul, call Cas and he’ll bring me back to do it. As much as I’m not his biggest fan, I trust Cas on this, and he trusts Gabe.” With that, he and Cas vanished.

Gabe fought a losing battle to keep the smug look off his face, "So, Cassie and Dean-o's signed off on this. And, Sam, seriously, I'd think spending all this time with Cas would have taught you the power of a soul is constant. No offense to your dear sort-of-Dad-figure, but if the soul of an old bitter alcoholic could let Cas get you and Dean back from a time travel trip, I think yours could help me open up the Pit." Gabriel sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I get that I've done some things to piss you off. I get that I've been what you might call a 'challenge' in the past. I get it. But I did go toe to toe with Lucifer, my own brother and the freaking Devil himself for you guys, and for all humanity. True, I didn't die there, but it was close, believe me. Can I get a little credit? Just a smidge?"

After several moments of silence, Sam raised his bottle to Gabriel. "What the hell. If you believe in our power this much, then you know what happens when we get crossed. I'm not threatening you, just mentioning it'd be dumb as hell on your part so... that makes me believe you." He wiggled the bottle then took the last drink. "But. You gotta promise me something. You be honest with me. No tricks, no douchebaggery. If something shady is going on, don't let me be the last to know. I get enough of the lies and deceit from Dean and Cas and frankly, I'm sick of it."   
"I'm the Trickster, of course there's a trick going on. What I can guarantee is that it's not on you or Dean, I already swore that. It's not even on Cas. For some reason, you two chuckleheads always seem to forget that I don't hurt or kill people for kicks. I teach lessons and punish those who are douches. I'm the Messenger, remember? I already apologized for the things I've done to you two, but even you have to admit, the lesson I tried to teach you at the Mystery Spot was valid. If you and Dean could stop sacrificing yourselves for each other, a lot of the huge problems you've had for the last decade would never have happened." Gabe sighed, then smiled vaguely, raising his own drink to Sam. "But here's to making this work. I promise you that I'm not pulling one over on you two, and as you pointed out, I'd be an idiot to try. Crowley's not the only one who doesn't underestimate you two. I've been watching for the stake since the beginning, remember. I need to borrow your soul, cast a spell, and BAM! Adam'll be free in no time. Then, the real fun starts."

Sam squinted at Gabriel. "We don't talk about Tuesdays around here." He snorted, then stood up and finally helped himself to the salad plate. He sat back down, this time in a chair and began to eat. He blinked at how good it was. He pointed with his fork, nodding his head at Gabriel in thanks. "So in what... capacity... do you need to borrow my soul?"   
"Don't worry, you won't be like you were before. No one wants Psycho Sam to come visit again. It's kind of hard to explain. I'm going to do a sort of spell. It's about halfway between that insane Purgatory gate that Cas and Crowley pulled and Lucifer raising Death. The soul of a human, the grace of an archangel and the blood of a demon. I took the liberty of acquiring the blood from a nasty cheater of a crossroads demon who was working as a faith healer on TV. He'd "heal" people asking them to turn over their life and souls to "the Lord". He neglected to say which lord. I handled it." Gabe grinned, snapping to summon a jug of red liquid. "Now I just paint some symbols," with another snap a series of complex runes, sigils and one detailed pentagram appeared on the floor of the bunker, "and you willingly allow me use of your soul. If we succeed and get Adam, you get your soul back and I get my grace back. If we fail, everyone, and I mean everyone, dies. Luci does his comeback tour, Mike tries to stop him, oh, and they'd both have a power boost from eating my grace.”

There was a moment of awkward silence as Gabe let that sink before continuing, “Luckily for us, I was the real prodigy when it came to magic. Didn't you ever wonder why I could do the snap and Luci couldn't? Wouldn't it have been convenient for the Prince of Darkness to be a bit more.. creative? No matter what he's told himself these last few millennia, I was a better student when Dad taught us this stuff. Portal opens, we go in, grab Adam, and get out. No harm, no foul, no getting sidelined when Luci plays up old grudges or Mike looks like Dean or your dad to distract you.” He glanced skeptically at Sam. “Can you do that? Can you stay focused long enough to save your brother? If not, let me know and i go in alone." Gabe’s voice was calm but with a note of pleading. He needed an honest answer here.

Putting his empty plate aside, Sam grabbed another beer, somehow thinking he'd need it. "So I go in, soul still in me, but... I get it now." He looked at the runes, only bits and pieces of different ones recognizable to him. "I can stay focused. Got a blade? I know it won't be much help against them, but at least I won't feel completely naked." He wondered if he should warn Gabriel that Lucifer did take out Castiel with a snap once, but shrugged instead. I must have been the power of Sam as his vessel, maybe even the power of the soul Gabe kept talking about. "I've played with dopplegangers before. They won't bother me. But just... just in case. Let's have a code word in case they all turn to you."

"A blade's easy, here take Raph's." Gabe snapped a blade to Sam's palm. "Code word's not really an option. See, if you know it, Luci can probably either pick it out of your brain or just whammy you to think he said it. I have a better idea." Gabe reached out both hands towards Sam's head.   
Sam hefted the blade a few times before realizing he was still in his pajamas and had no where to stash it. He stood up as Gabriel spoke, standing still with wide eyes as Gabriel reached out for him. "Wha....?"   
As Gabe’s fingers brushed the sides of Sam's head, a pair of large golden wings emerged from his upper back. They seemed to be made of lightning and wind and light and somehow, laughter. "You'll be able to see them whenever you try, now, though you can stop seeing them with a thought. They shouldn't be too distracting that way, but wings are to angels what fingerprints are to you mortals. Not even Mike or Luci could mimic them." With a shrug, Gabe let his wings fully extend. "What do you think?"

Sam jerked back, a feeling of being back in heaven washing over him. The wings stayed because he wanted them to. It took a full turn of his head to see them all. He smiled finally. "Freaking beautiful, man." He stared for a few moments, learning the patterns the feathers fell in, the curves, and the way they moved. Without thinking, a hand reached forward and touched Gabriel's left wing, just above his shoulder. "Soft...." He breathed before realizing that he was touching a body part of someone else. "Geez, sorry. I uh..." he stammered. "They're nice. Yeah." What a gross understatement, he told himself.

"Thanks. Well, like I said, they're one of a kind. No worrying about them pretending to be me when you can see these babies. I mean, obviously they aren't literal wings. That'd be silly. They're the best that human minds can do to perceive our grace." Gabe froze for a moment, eyes wide. Realizing what Sam said, how he responded, that he'd freaking touched the wings, his brain froze. He took a deep breath and said, "Soft. You said, soft. Did they feel that way to you?"

Sam stared at him for a long moment, rubbing his fingertips against his thumb. "Not real? Something is there. Else my mind is playing tri... Dammit! I'm going to get dressed." He huffed back to his room, confused, and changed into jeans and a t shirt, grabbing his jacket as well. Odd. Packing a jacket for hell. He stuck the blade in the inner pocket and packed a gun for good measure. He grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled Dean a note. "Gone to hell. Be back later." He rejoined Gabriel once more, this time without stammering. "I felt something soft."

"You felt them. That's... interesting. And a subject for a non-hell-raiding time. For now, let's get moving. I need you to verbally and clearly give me permission to use your soul and ask me, by name, to help your brother, who you also need to name. And, yes, I wish it were simpler." Gabriel did everything he could to block out the fact that Sam feeling his grace was just as profound and deep as the fact that he would soon hold Sam's very soul in his hands. He needed to stay focused despite his growing wonder. He needed to help Sam. He had to. He had failed so many, he couldn't fail him too. "Whenever you're ready, Gigantor. We've got a Pit to raid."   
Sam cleared his throat, then said in what Dean sometimes called his “lawyer” voice, "I, Sam Winchester, give the archangel Gabriel permission to use my soul. I also ask for his help in getting Adam back to Earth where he belongs. Um... out of hell I guess. Er, no. I don't guess. I do. I mean... Come on, is that good enough yet?"

"That was perfect." Without so much as moment's hesitation or warning, Gabriel plunged his left hand into Sam's torso, pulling out a ball of brilliant light. It shone bright, but it was also shadowed, as though the noon day sun was seen from behind smoky glass. "A truly noble soul, tarnished a bit by suffering and hardened and tempered by loss..." Gabriel's voice faded for a moment, before he cleared his throat and spoke again, "I am Gabriel, bearer of the Horn of Truth, Messenger of the Lord God Almighty. I bore the Word, I carried the Good News, and I wove the veil. I, Gabriel Trumpeter, Prince of Hosts, brother of Michael, Raphael, Lucifer and all the Hosts of Heaven, in the Name of My Father, by the soul of the redeemed and grace He has given me, command the gate to open. By the shed blood of the fallen and words of light, let the message be carried. Let the Messenger pass." He paused for a moment, then flashed a familiar grin to Sam, continuing, "But I am also Loki Lie-Smith, foster brother to Thunder and adoptive son to the All-Father. I do not walk alone, and shall not again. This gate shall allow this mortal to pass. This is my will. Open, gate, or let the world burn." 

With his final words, a ghostly fire burst forth from the ball of light which was Sam's soul and poured toward the pentagram on the floor. The fire filled the circle, burning away the floor as it went, leaving a gaping hole. "You'll need this back, Sam," Gabe said as he flicked his wrist, sending Sam's soul right back to his chest. "Let's go" Gabe took his first step toward the Pit, hoping Sam wouldn't notice his slip. He doubted his luck.   
He'd winced heavily with the pain of of the hand, but it was a pain he'd felt a few times before. He gritted his teeth as he felt some part of him, his very being in a way, what made him Sam being pulled from his body. He recovered quickly, in time enough to hear Gabriel fawning over the ball of light and shadow. He smiled slowly as he watched the spell being recited. His eyes roamed up and down, dark thoughts entering his mind. His Jiminy Cricket had run off with Cas, though, and that familiar grin Gabriel was tossing at him? He lifted his eyebrows in pure amusement as he waited. Then his soul was flung back into him. He blushed, remembering his thoughts just moments before, feeling rather confused. He cleared his own throat, nodding quickly. "Yeah. Let's." He peered into the hole, steadying himself, then grabbed Gabriel by the elbow. "Together, so we don't end up separated somehow."   
"Gladly, Sam. Gladly" Gabe shook himself internally, knowing that seeing Sam's essence light up his eyes again meant he'd notice quickly if he kept using his real name. No use in letting the big guy know Gabriel was fighting thoughts of his own. Time for the ol' Trickster charm to come out. "You know I don't take just anyone to meet the family. Even Kali had to wait until she was about to die, and she was smoking hot." He put his literally trademarked Casa Erotica leer on his face, "but you hold on as tight as you want. And... Geronimo!" Gabriel jumped into the pit, making sure as he did so that Sam's hand was a solid weight sliding up his bicep.

Jumping alongside with a tight grip, Sam shut his eyes. He hated this part. The falling, the rush of things getting warmer quickly, and the uncertainty of when to bend his knees to absorb the shock of finally hitting pay-dirt all made him feel much more helpless than he liked to feel. Time was endless and quick all in a single second. His fingers gripped even tighter as the fall felt faster. "Umph!" he groaned as tumbled onto the floor. So much for bending his knees. He let go of Gabriel and rolled to his feet, offering his ride a hand up. "Honored, you know. But I've been your brother's bitch once or twice already. No real touchy feeling meeting needed on that front."   
Gabe turned gritted teeth into a smile. He hadn't planned on settling scores while he was down here, but if he ran across Luci right now, his actions were hardly guaranteed. Of course his anger was focused on Luci having killed him, not that Lucifer couldn't keep his hands or grace to himself and had touched Sam. It was definitely not the casual way Sam said he'd been his bitch that bothered him. Not at all. Nope. Damn. "No touchy feely meeting will be tolerated," he said, taking Sam's hand. "Let's get this over with."

After a quick jerk to pull Gabriel to his feet and a dust off of his jeans, Sam turned to find himself face to face with Lucifer. Sam's eyes went wide and his jaw clenched as his nostrils flared. With not enough room between them to reach into his pocket, Sam raised his knee and shoved with both hands, knocking the blonde-haired archangel backwards. 

Lucifer actually smiled when Sam knocked him back, "Whoa... Sammy Sammy Sammy! I never expected to see you again. No, really. This is an awesome surprise. How in the devil did you..." He stopped as he saw who was standing behind Sam. "Are you serious? Little brother mine... I felt your blood on my hands. Come on. Talk to me. Tell me what you did, you naughty little trickster." He spread his arms wide with a wider smile. "Come give me a hug!"   
"Take one more step you bag of dicks and I'll gut you." Gabriel's smiling was dazzling as he flipped his blade like a coin, sending it spinning in the air to land in his palm. "Where's the boy? We're not here for you, we're here for Michael's bunkmate." 

Michael lifted his head slowly from the other side of the already small room. He glared at Gabriel as though something more loathsome than a cockroach or demon had dared enter his personal quarters. With John Winchester's face and Dean's voice he spoke, ice in his tone. "You will take nothing, you traitorous whelp. You undeserving turncoat, how dare you show your face! You left me and the rest of those loyal to our Father to go off and play with those pagan sluts you loved so much." He finally seemed to realize Sam was in the room, and looking a bit older, still John through and through, he turned. "And you... finally find a member of your family you care about enough to save? Leaving Dean in purgatory? Really? I thought you were better than that, demon blood and all. I guess I was wrong. You and Lucifer would have been so happy together, leaving your siblings and causing the End together. How many times have you let Dean die, now, brat?" For a moment, Dean's voice was gone and it could have been John himself standing in front of Sam. "I should have killed you in the womb, monster."   
"Ouuuch" Luci winced. "I swear, I'm glad you two are here. I'm getting really tired of this holier than thou routine of his." He jerked his thumb at Michael. "Blah blah, you're wrong, blah blah, I'm right. All day long!" 

But no one seemed to be paying attention to Luci at the moment. All eyes were on Michael. Sam's eyes in particular shot daggers. It would be a lie to say those words didn’t get under his skin. But he ignored them with the practice of years of being the black sheep of the Winchesters. He spoke through grit teeth, "See, Michael... that's bull. You didn't have anything to do with my creation. My father died proud of me. And you don't have the friggin' right to speak of Dean. You threw your brother into Hell on purpose. The only exploding Dick involved was you!” He breathed out and his voice was colder than Lucifer had ever aspired to, “Now, where's Adam?" 

Lucifer clapped slowly. "Sammy grew a pair in my absence? When did this happen?"

"Maybe your story'd be different if you realized he had a pair when you were around." Gabe grinned at Lucifer's response. "Instead you're down here with Captain Crusades-were-a-great-idea while I get to coast on you accidentally helping me fake my own death. Bravo, Luci, truly, bravo. I didn't learn all my tricks from you, dumbass, I make my own rules.”

Michael grimaced at his brothers camaraderie, "Adam is no concern of either of yours. He is mine, by ancient compact and blood right. I will not give him up. He chose to be mine and I will not surrender him. You know the Rules as well as I do, Gabriel, we cannot make decisions for mortals, only aid them in the decisions they make. Father Himself will descend if you try to unlawfully take Adam from me." Now Michael grinned, suddenly stealing Dean's smile, "But I'm open to a trade. Adam for you, Gabriel. I will release Adam from his bonds and return him with Sam. They can use your grace to return to Earth. You won't need it here. I have some scores to settle for your abandoning our Father. A few thousand years should be a good start."   
"Oh, wait, Michael. He makes his own rules, didn't you hear?" Luci said, after stopping his hand from mimicing Michael's talking. "Honestly, I'm just waiting for you all to shut up with the foreplay before we get to the ass. Er, Kicking. Ass-kicking." 

"We don't make deals with dicks. Your Father? He's gone. You keep believing those lies, but if He didn't show up for anyone else, why do you think He'd be there for you?" Sam glanced back to Gabriel, hoping he wasn't about to try to buy this crap.   
"I'll do it." Gabriel glanced at Sam a moment, begging him not to argue. "I'm in. I swear it by my name, I won't try to leave. Just let Adam and Sam go. Let them go freely and I'll stay. But they both leave first."

"Take your brother and get out of here, Samuel. This is no place for mortal souls. We brothers have a lot of catching up to do, and I want to get started." Michael grinned. "We are going to have so much fun together." 

Gabriel nodded. Then jerked his head toward the door that had appeared behind them. "Go, Sam, this is no place for anyone but angels..." From the glimmer in his eyes, Gabe was trying to tell Sam something.   
"Hey, don't I get a say in this? I want Sam to stay!" Lucifer whined. "I miss him! I don't want to stay down here with Michael and the cheater!" 

Samuel? Sam blinked and his mouth was open to argue, but he heard a moan from the corner of the room behind Michael. Something was chained tightly to the wall and Sam felt sick with memory. His eyes cut to Lucifer who once more spread his arms and shrugged. "Adam?!" he bellowed. He drew the blade Gabriel had given him to ensure he got passed Michael safely as he crouched to check on Adam.

"I have given Samuel my protection. I have given him his brother. The next thousand years can be you and I sharing Gabriel, or Gabriel and I could bond over you. I'm sure the brother you thought you killed would be happy to reminisce over a few slights. Stand down, Lucifer, for once in your worthless life." Michael turned from Lucifer with eyes still full of cold rage. "Go now Samuel. I have no illusions as to how long I can keep Lucifer tame."

"You heard him, Sam. Go." Gabriel's voice was barely a whisper, but somehow echoed in the Pit, filling the space.   
"Gabriel, we don't have to do it like this..." Sam growled, Adam carefully gathered into his arms and cradled against his chest. The boy lay limp, naked, and unconscious. 

"It's done, Sammy boy. Gabriel and I are about to spend the next millennium finding ways to punish that righteous mouth of Michael's.” Gabriel shuddered slightly at the thought of doing anything of the kind with Lucifer at his side. “I'd get while the fucking getting is good, unless you want to get when the fucking’s good. Just promise me, if you find Raphael somewhere, you'll find a way to bring him to this party?" Lucifer blew Sam a kiss and wiggled his fingers goodbye. 

"Gabriel, no. Don't listen to them. We can..." But the light was already lifting him toward the doorway.

Gabriel smiled as Sam went through the door. To his brothers, he seemed to be saying goodbye. Sam could see a hint of the Trickster in that smile, though. The gate closed, leaving blank floor behind, with Gabriel locked behind it. Gabriel was gone.

Sam stood in shock, holding Adam, staring at the floor. "You better have lied to me..." he finally whispered. He turned around to find Dean and Cas returning. He looked down to Adam, then up at them. The fact that Gabriel wasn't with him didn't need to be spoken aloud. Cas had wrapped Adam in a blanket while Sam held back tears at Gabriel’s loss. It wasn’t until Dean handed him a tissue that he realized he’d lost that battle and dabbed at his eyes.

Then Winchesters did what Winchesters did best: try their damnedest to mend hells within. All three of them turned to look at Adam, who was just stirring from having passed out during his rescue.

Adam woke up calmly, without a wince or the slightest sign of pain. Looking at Sam’s face, he remembered everything that had happen and sighed. Barely raising his voice above a whisper, he turned toward empty space and said calmly, "Aren't you going to let him know yet? Isn't this a bit cruel?"

Sam blinked, looking to the space Adam was talking to. "Who... who're you talking to, Adam?"

"Have you forgotten my name so soon?" Gabriel stepped into sight from where he’d been hiding under a veil of illusion, grin splitting his face. "What's my name, kiddo?"

Sam fought to keep his eyes from rolling, having given up the fight on the tears already. "Not just Gabriel. But also Loki."

Taking Sam into his arms, Gabriel corrected, "Loki Lie-Smith. But more importantly, the name I swore by. The Pit's an angel's prison, kiddo. Gabriel would be trapped forever, but Loki can only be bound by the entrails of his own kid... long story.” He wiped a tear from Sam’s eye, “When I swore, it was my vessel swearing. They kept him for about 5 minutes. Loki and I have been more united as a single being than you and your teeth for centuries. He didn't want anything to do with Odin's madness and I needed to stay under the radar. I, Gabriel, flew the coop seconds before you and Adam did. Loki took a bit longer to get out. I don't recommend Cas try this at home... I almost didn't get out. Luci would have caught me if he weren't so distracted... the perv." Gabriel smiled sadly, "But I knew you two would get out and that's what mattered."

Sam lifted his finger to Gabe’s lips and stared at the archangel, his mouth moving several times with no words. His finger lowered, and he replaced it with his lips. The shock on the Trickster’s face was worth it. When he pulled away, he thought of the future and knowing that this was the best possible outcome, managed to whisper, "Thank you."

"As I said, Sam-squatch, now the fun really begins." Gabriel grinned. They had work to do. Right after Sam showed him where his bedroom was. And they explored all the different things they could do with them both safe, whole and together. Gabriel laughed outright as Sam led the way.

“What’s so funny, dare I ask?” Sam was grinning too, now. Who’d have thought an archangel would be the first guy in his bed since college.

“I don’t know who’s going to be more upset about us, Dean or the bad guys.” Gabe couldn’t fight the laughter and completely lost it.

Sam laughed right next to him, imagining the conversation in the morning. They laughed all the way to bed, where other sounds and other thoughts took over. 

It was a good night.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are love. Visit me on tumblr at: pensivemaniac.tumblr.com


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